Parents’ joy after they’re told their son is cancer-free

A BATTLING boy’s family have been given the best Christmas gift they could have wished for after being told he’s cancer free.

Three-year-old Bradley Lowery, who won a Pride of Wearside Child of Courage Award last year, has battled neuroblastoma for the last two years.

Three-year-old Bradley Lowery has battled neuroblastoma for the last two years. Parents were told last night that he now has no evidence of cancer. ''grandad Howard Stonebank

But his parents, Gemma and Carl Lowery, were told that he is now showing no evidence of cancer in his body.

The couple, from Blackhall, who also have a son, Kieran, 12, say they couldn’t have wished for anything better in the run up to Christmas.

Gemma, 31, said: “We got a call from the consultant at about 5pm to tell us that although the tumour in his chest is still there, it’s no longer cancerous.

“The tumour in his kidney is the same – that one’s dead as well.

“We can’t say he’s in remission until it’s been five years, but what they’re saying is that there’s now no evidence of cancer.

“It’s just absolutely unbelievable. We never ever thought that this day would come. It’s been such a struggle over the last two years and this is just amazing news, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. Christmas has definitely come early for us.

“The support from everyone so far on Facebook and Twitter has just been overwhelming.”

She added: “It will be two years in January since he was diagnosed but even before that, he was really poorly.

“We can’t remember having a Christmas when Bradley wasn’t poorly so this year is going to be amazing.

“Bradley always knew he was poorly, we said that he had ‘nasties’ in his tummy and ever since we got the news he’s been running around saying, ‘I did it’ and ‘the nasties are gone’.”

With chances of relapse high, Gemma says the job of fundraising isn’t over.

A huge fundraising drive was set up to raise £500,000 to pay for treatment overseas, should the youngster suffer a relapse.

So far, the incredible work by the members of the Bradley Lowery Neuroblastoma Fight Group has raised £220,000.

Gemma, a NHS health trainer at Healthworks in Easington Colliery, added: “There is an 80 per cent chance of relapse so the fundraising still needs to go on.

“Hopefully Bradley won’t need it and the money can go to another child.

“The consultant is still talking about radiotherapy, because it reduces the risk of relapse, and about stem cell harvesting. We’ve still got quite a way to go before the end of the hospital visits, but for now, we’re just celebrating the good news and looking forward to spending Christmas together at home.”